Race 7 - Day 10
Crew Diary - Race 7 Day 10
10 February
It’s been a busy time on the merry ship Dare To Lead. As a Pollywog, I was subjected to a most horrific sacrificial ceremony to the good King Neptune. This involved pledging my allegiance to the great god and then giving some precious lemonade as a sign of my true respect. AND THEN...drinking a cup of disgusting slop [some of the ingredients were: cereal, tomato chutney, chili oil, onions, orange juice, marmite, peanut butter, sriracha, garlic, and chili powder – goodness knows what else!]. But I’m proud to say that nine of us walked away as fully-fledged Shellbacks to join the other ten onboard. We celebrated with the rest of our cold fizzy drink – what a treat!!
Life in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) is quite a mystery, the weather is completely unpredictable, which makes dressing appropriately for watches a guessing game. I have broadly accepted my fate as being mostly damp, either from the relentless squalls and driving rain that they bring, or the sweat that builds up below in this intense humidity. However, I am one of the lucky ones. Few people choose the top bunks, but on this starboard tack, I get both a bunk on the low side and a cooling breeze through the hatch straight into the bunk. Winner!
Victualling has once again been top-notch: ice lollies, frozen Tim Tams, ice cold water, and squash amongst the many things prepared to keep our energy and hydration up. Although one oversight has cropped up - we have officially run out of tea. With a good two weeks to go, this is not ideal, but we’ve survived worse. ;)
That’s about the long and short of it! Sailing wise we’re going along nicely: we win in some conditions and lose out in others. That’s how it goes, you get what you get, and you don’t get upset. Everyone’s well and having fun and that’s the most important thing.
Huge love to all my family [especially my boys Sam and Joe], friends, and Dare To Lead supporters everywhere! Keep wishing us fair winds and we’ll keep pressing for every place we can get!